


Lady of the Evening

by slightly_murderous_sorcerer (emerald_witch_esmeralda)



Category: Arthurian Mythology & Related Fandoms
Genre: Aurelius is best brother and best boi, Crossdressing, Crossdressing Kink, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Merlin is a pretty lady, Miscommunication, Uther is crazy but a good boyfriend, dumbass disaster boyfriends who can’t admit their kinks to each other, have some more unnecessary drama, i am the fuckin conductor of the Muther train, more Muther fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-31
Updated: 2020-07-31
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:41:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,532
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25635964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emerald_witch_esmeralda/pseuds/slightly_murderous_sorcerer
Summary: It all began with lady’s things, satin and lace...things that a man certainly wouldn’t need.
Relationships: Merlin/Uther Pendragon
Kudos: 34





	Lady of the Evening

It all began with a piece of satin.  
“Uther!” The crown prince of Britain turned from arranging his soldier figurines at the sound of his brother’s voice. “Sire. Is there something that you need?”  
Aurelius stared at him, and Uther could immediately tell that his commanding officer and king was about to speak to him instead of his brother. “Yes...do keep your bedroom activities a bit more discreet, would you? I know it’s difficult for you to be subtle but you’re crown prince and have to show at least a basic level of decorum.”  
“What are you droning on about now?” He caught the object fluttering into his lap as Aurelius threw it, lifting it with a surprised look. “It seems that the lack of battle hasn’t dulled your reflexes.”  


  
“Aurelius, what the hell is this?” Uther held up the offending garment, and Aurelius looked at him like he’d just told him that the sky was green and purple. “I’m your king, you can’t speak to me like that. And what do you think?! A ladies’ stocking, obviously!”  
It was a fair bit of white satin and lace...clearly it belonged to a lady of quality. “Okay, but what does it have to do with me?”  
“I found it in your bedroom...Uther, you know I don’t care about who you sleep with but you don’t have to flaunt the evidence of your little floozies where I have to see it. Does Merlin know about this?”  


  
_Why the hell were you in my room to begin with, fuckwad?_ Aurelius was king now, but first and foremost he was Uther’s big brother and sometimes he just couldn’t switch that mode off...even when Aurelius was trying to be serious and kingly. “‘Course he does, he and I have invited other people into our bed before. But we haven’t had anyone in months...why was this in my room?!”  
“You mean one of your ladies of the evening didn’t leave it there?”  
“No? I don’t know how in the world it got there!” Uther was slowly going from confused to...how did this girl’s undergarments end up in his bed? Unless one of the maids was using his rooms, and he knew they were smarter than that… Aurelius finally broke the silence, understanding dawning in his voice. “Do you think Merlin…?”  
“No.” Uther immediately shook his head. “Merlin wouldn’t cheat on me, he wouldn’t do that. We shouldn’t jump to conclusions, I’m sure maybe one of the maids just left her things lying around.” He _hated_ how unsure he sounded, but he knew Merlin would never do such a thing to him.There had to be a logical explanation, right?.  
“You’re right...we have no proof.” Aurelius still sounded a bit skeptical. “Merlin loves you, I’m sure…”  
“Let’s just drop it, alright? I’ve got to finish these battle plans.  


  
But over the next few weeks, it became more and more clear that whatever this was, it wasn’t mere coincidence. Uther had found another stocking...and then a balled-up heap of white in the corner that turned out to be a lady’s chemise upon closer inspection. It seemed to pile up; a red gown was found hanging in Merlin’s side of the closet, and when he visited Merlin’s tower he found a chest full of dresses. Why would he need a chest full of dresses?! There was even rouge and powder tucked away in the corner bundled up in a pink damask number, and Uther could no longer shrug it off. Something wasn’t right here...his lover had women’s clothing in his possession and for one reason or another felt the need to hide this from him. Whoever this lady was; she was very tall and very _flat_. Which was odd because they both loved a buxom woman, if his lover was going to be unfaithful to him then why would he choose some gangly flat thing?! If he needed a lack of breasts, he didn’t need to look elsewhere! All possible scenarios danced through his head, and every single one of them made him sick.  
Merlin’s behavior had certainly done nothing to alleviate Uther’s fears either. Oh he was still as affectionate and loving as ever, whatever was going on certainly hadn’t put a damper on Merlin’s feelings for him...or their sex life. But being away for strange hours, there were couriers coming to the palace that neither he nor his brother had summoned...and Merlin had refused to tell him what was in the packages. Why was he hiding them? Who were they for, the little tart that had taken his fancy? Uther knew he was probably being irrational since he had nothing solid but the thought of Merlin touching, kissing, _lying_ with someone else. The thought of them drawing sounds from him that only Uther had, the thought of him with someone else in _their_ bed and those clothes in _their_ wardrobe brought tears pricking behind the prince’s eyes. Before he knew it, his vision had entirely blurred...thankfully Aurelius was kind enough not to say anything when he discovered his warrior brother sobbing on the stone floor near Merlin’s closet.  


  
“I don’t want to believe it either Uther, but what other explanation do we really have that makes sense?” The king was circling around his brother’s chair, where Uther sat slumped with his face buried in his hands. “He...I don’t…” Uther’s voice was muffled both by tears and his own fingers. “He wouldn’t break my heart like this.”  
“I know...Merlin has been an ally to this family for years, it doesn’t make any sense but yet it’s the most logical reason I could think of.” Aurelius sighed, placing hands on his brother’s shoulders. The sight of his little brother so shattered made the king want to go storm to wherever Merlin was and stomp him until he was black and blue, though Uther was perfectly capable of doing so himself. “Whose dresses were in the closet? And the underthings in your bedroom?”  
“He told me they were his sister’s.” Uther remembered the confrontation he’d had with Merlin yesterday, demanding to know where all these dresses were coming from. Merlin had nervously told him they were Ganieda’s. But then why the nervousness? Why couldn’t he look his lover in the eyes as he said it? Why were his “sister’s” things in the royal bedchamber of all places?! As Uther pressed on, Merlin shut down and simply said that he didn’t wish to talk about it anymore, scarlet rising in his cheeks like it always did when he was upset or embarrassed. Uther had been so angry then that they’d actually gotten into a scuffle as the prince demanded what he had to hide.  
“Yes, and that turned out to be an obvious lie. I’ve seen the Lady Ganieda, she’s nowhere near that tall. And from her figure, she’s definitely not that poorly endowed. I honestly don’t know what else it could be, and the only way to find out is to confront him.”  
“I know...but I just can’t _bear_ it. What could I have possibly done wrong to make him seek someone else?” Tears returned to Uther’s reddened eyes. “I know I’m away on campaign a lot...I know I can be moody and irritable but I never thought…where did I go wrong?!”  
“Don’t you dare!” Aurelius all but growled. “If he’s cheating on you, it’s his fault. Nobody else’s and certainly not yours! You’ve not been perfect but you’ve certainly been an excellent partner from what I’ve seen. Come on, you’ve faced the Saxon army head on...you can certainly handle this.” Uther still looked uncertain. “I’ll tell you what, I’ll come with you. It could be nothing, but it could also very well be something and you won’t know any peace until you find out on your own.”  


  
“Are you ready for this?” Aurelius reached to squeeze his brother’s hand in a way they hadn’t done since they were boys. Uther squeezed back, hating feeling like a small child in need of reassurance but appreciating the comfort. _Merlin, by the old gods and the new...you better not have betrayed me. I swear to you, I’ve done everything I could to try to make you happy...we promised each other when we first started this that we’d be faithful to each other, you **swore** to me. You said you loved me as much as I love you, I assumed you meant it. I hope...I hope to God you didn’t break our promise, don’t shatter me like that. I don’t deserve that._ Climbing the stairs to Merlin’s tower, the royal brothers came to the door and Uther reeled back. “God...the smell!” The scent of something rich, fruity and grassy whacked you in the face through the cracked oaken door. “Perfume...really _strong_ perfume. Expensive too, Arabian myrrh isn’t cheap.” Aurelius noted.  
“You know what it is?”  
“Of course I do...it’s pretty popular among the court ladies. There’s orange blossom in there as well.”  
“Court ladi...so he’s fucking around with someone in the court?!” Uther hissed, red blooming behind his eyes. “That’s _it_!” The prince grabbed the doorknob and swung the door open the rest of the way, letting it slam into the wall. “Merlin! Who’s the whore?! Where is she, you cheating bastar…” Uther didn’t even get much of a chance to finish his sentence, there _was_ a woman in Merlin’s room...but this was a lady both familiar and unfamiliar to him. When those startled blue eyes met his, he instantly knew. “M...Merlin?” The rage and roaring had died to a whisper, and Aurelius merely stood in the doorway mouth agape. This was Merlin, there was no mistaking that...but this was him in a way that Uther had never seen him before. His short beard had been shaved, his face rouged and powdered in the style of the ladies of the court. That blond hair that Uther so loved to run his fingers through was elaborately done up and instead of his usual robes, Merlin was wearing that same pink damask gown that Uther had been crying into just the day before. He was currently in the process of rouging his lips, as evidenced by the brush he was holding just centimeters from his mouth. “Uther! Wh..what are you doing here?! And Your Majesty…”  
Aurelius held a hand up to stop him. “I don’t even want to _know_ what’s going on here.”  


  
“I certainly do...Merlin, explain this.” Uther stepped forward, still not quite believing the sight of his lover. Merlin looked uncharacteristically sheepish, coughing nervously into his embroidered sleeve. “Well, I suppose there’s no use of hiding it anymore.” he sighed, looking at the two. “I wear dresses sometimes.”  
“Why?”  
“I can’t really explain it...I just enjoy it sometimes, alright? It makes me feel pretty.” Merlin’s face turned pink under his rouge at the last word. Uther stepped forward and fingered a loose curl, still not quite sure what to make of all this. “So...that was _your_ gown in our bedroom closet? The red one?”  
“Yes, actually.” The wizard flashed a silly grin. “That’s one of my favourites.”  
“And the stockings and the chemise? Those were yours too, weren’t they?”  
“Yes, they were. Uther, what were you…” Understanding dawned on Merlin’s face, why Uther was all fire and fury both the time they argued and upon bursting into his chambers. “You thought I was having an affair, didn’t you?”  
“Well, what was I supposed to think?!” Uther burst out. “You were acting weird and avoiding me and not answering any of my questions, all these women’s clothes and shit ending up in my fucking bedroom with no idea of how it got there?! Merlin...I feared the _worst_. You had no idea. Why did you feel the need to be so damn secretive?!”  
“I didn’t want you to think I was weird or to think any less of me!” He reached out to stroke Uther’s cheek. “I would never be unfaithful to you, you damned silly goose. I _love_ you.”  
Uther chuckled wetly. “Well, I know that now...but I wish you would’ve told me.”  
“I know, and I should have.” Merlin closed the gap between them, settling his arms around Uther’s hips and pressing their foreheads together. Aurelius sighed, allowing himself a small fond smile before exiting down the staircase. “I’m sorry...I really am. I just feared what you would think.”  
“Why would you? You look _beautiful_.”  
“You really think so?” Merlin looked up at his lover in surprise. “Well it’s not something that comes up a lot in casual conversation. My name is Merlin,I’m high sorcerer to King Aurelius, I like to wear ladies’ dresses.”  
The two of them softly laughed, still connected.  


  
“You could certainly give the court ladies a run for their money.” He noticed something a bit...softer than usual pressing against him. “What are these?” Uther looked down and reached out to touch Merlin’s suddenly fuller chest. “You don’t have these, I would know. Is it magic?”  
“It’s padding, my dear. Much less strenuous and wasteful.”  
“My fair lady.” Uther whispered, smiling when Merlin kissed his forehead.  
“I can’t believe you thought I was cheating on you, you absolute carrot!” Uther laughed as he was being shoved, responding back with a shove of his own. This continued until Uther grabbed Merlin around the waist and pulled the wizard to him, giggling as Merlin’s attempt to shove him away resulted in the both of them tumbling to the floor in a heap of silks and riotous laughter.  
”Honestly, Uther. If I were having an affair, would I be stupid enough to leave the evidence strewn about?” Merlin turned to cup Uther’s cheek in his hand. “I must’ve put you through such a horrid time...is there anything I could do to make it up to you?”  
“One, _never lie to me again._ We all have shit we’re into, I wouldn’t judge you...so have the stones to come to me next time, yeah?  
“Agreed. And two?”  
“Model your dresses for me, especially that sexy red one. And let me take it off later. Seriously, this dress thing is kinda hot.” He reached out to trace the patterns running through the fine fabric of Merlin’s skirts. “So you are my lovely lady of the evening that Aurelius was referring to.”  


  
“Just the evening?” Merlin leaned in for a kiss.  
“Not at all. The morning, the evening, the nighttime...every hour of every day.”  
“Would you let me put makeup on you, I wonder? Dress you as a beautiful lady?” He lightly traced his lover’s jaw with red-painted nails, face twisted in thought. “Hm...:”  
“What?” Uther laughed.  
“You have a very masculine face...strong jaw.”  
“Well I would hope so, I’m a man.”  
“That you are, dearest. The handsomest and sexiest man in Britain...but it’ll make the illusion quite a bit harder. I’d have to pile a fuck-ton of cosmetics on your face.”  


  
“Oi! Are you saying I’d be an ugly girl?!”  
“That’s _precisely_ what I’m saying.”  
“Hey!”  



End file.
